Googleâs detailed plans for a 350-acre development in the Port Lands came as a complete surprise, said politicians from across the city, the province and the country on Friday.Yet lobbying records reveal Googleâs sister company, Sidewalk Labs, has been communicating frequently with a wide swath of elected representatives and staff. And Sidewalkâs own records mention âweekly briefingsâ with all three levels of government. At city hall, at Queenâs Park and on Parliament Hill, government officials said the sprawling project revealed by the Star Thursday evening was not part of their discussions with Sidewalk Labs, which was selected only to plan development on a small, 12-acre plot of land known as Quayside.âThe revelations left me very highly disturbed because all along the understanding was that this project was for a smart city for the 12 acres, and itâs very clear that they want to control the destiny of the Port Lands. Thatâs never been in any kind of agreement,â said Councillor Paula Fletcher, whose Ward 14 (Toronto-Danforth) encompasses the Port Lands.At Queenâs Park, a senior government official said the plan has no chance of proceeding.âThere is no way on Godâs green earth that Premier Doug Ford would ever sign off on handing away nearly 500 acres of prime waterfront property to a foreign multinational company,â the source said.Read more: Opinion | Edward Keenan: Torontoâs approach to Amazon is a model of how to deal with GoogleGoogleâs Sidewalk Labs plans massive expansion to waterfront visionAuditor generalâs report urges province to âreassessâ Quayside projectIn Ottawa, a spokesperson for Infrastructure Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the deal with Sidewalk hasnât changed.âThe scope of the Quayside redevelopment remains confined to a portion of the Port Lands and does not exempt Sidewalk Labs from any of the normal ...
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